Another Shocking Video from Sri Lanka

The British news company, Channel 4, has released another shocking video on Sri Lanka, this time on the terrible conditions facing Sri Lanka’s displaced Tamils in the internment camps they’re currently held in. (For background on this story, see the Sri Lanka page on the AIUSA website.) Like the earlier execution video released by Channel 4, Amnesty International cannot confirm whether the video and pictures reportedly shot inside the camps two weeks ago are authentic. We could do so if the Sri Lankan government would allow aid workers and independent human rights observers full, unimpeded access to the camps and their civilian population.

It’s imperative that conditions in the camps be improved quickly, especially with the monsoon rains coming in the next few weeks. But even more important, the civilians must be allowed to leave the camps if they wish. On that score, we may have gotten some good news today: the Sri Lankan government announced today that civilians in the camps could be released if they had relatives willing to take them. We’ll see whether this is implemented and how many it will apply to. But even those civilians without such relatives are still entitled to freedom of movement. Being caught in a war zone is not a crime; the displaced civilians should not be treated as criminals. Unlock the camps now!

About Jim McDonald

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However, it was clearly identified that the video in discussion here is a hoax. It was done by some people acting the scene and the bad acting shows. I can’t understand why a respectable organization as Amnesty would stoop down to the levels of jumping off the gun to be disrepute and publish these articles before actually researching to see whether it is right or wrong…

In response to Troy Bazooka's comments, I would reiterate the point of my post: the Sri Lankan government should allow independent observers and aid agencies access to the former war zone and the camps for the displaced civilians. I did not claim that the video was authentic, only that AI and other outside observers are not able to check on its authenticity without having access to the population that had been present in the former war zone. It is to be expected that the Sri Lankan government would say that the video is a fabrication. The articles cited by Troy Bazooka that the video was shot with a video camera and not a mobile phone, and that the audio was added later to the video. From that, we are asked to conclude that the video is a fabrication. Outside observers might want to conduct their own technical analysis of the video to see if it confirms the assertions of the Sri Lankan government. Even assuming it does, the technical points do not necessarily mean that the video is a fabrication. To determine as conclusively as possible whether it is, outside observers would need access to the civilian population. The point of my post was to call on the Sri Lankan government to allow access to the civilian population and, furthermore, to allow the civilians the freedom of movement they're entitled to.

In response to Troy Bazooka’s comments, I would reiterate the point of my post: the Sri Lankan government should allow independent observers and aid agencies access to the former war zone and the camps for the displaced civilians. I did not claim that the video was authentic, only that AI and other outside observers are not able to check on its authenticity without having access to the population that had been present in the former war zone. It is to be expected that the Sri Lankan government would say that the video is a fabrication. The articles cited by Troy Bazooka that the video was shot with a video camera and not a mobile phone, and that the audio was added later to the video. From that, we are asked to conclude that the video is a fabrication. Outside observers might want to conduct their own technical analysis of the video to see if it confirms the assertions of the Sri Lankan government. Even assuming it does, the technical points do not necessarily mean that the video is a fabrication. To determine as conclusively as possible whether it is, outside observers would need access to the civilian population. The point of my post was to call on the Sri Lankan government to allow access to the civilian population and, furthermore, to allow the civilians the freedom of movement they’re entitled to.

What about the leg positions changing from one screen to another (of a dead man ) ??? Is that authentic in your terms ???

Jim, I see that your problem is that you guys are not allowed to go to the camps.

With the past experiences the GOSL had with aid workers and NGO's operating the areas who were the very people that gave the LTTE technical support and know how to build the air crafts and Submarines. Do you expect the government or any other living soul (or even a dead soul) to trust any organization ?????????????????????????

You guys have spoiled it for your selves. May be not you directly, but some others for you – may be you could help the government find them, win their confidence and then request to enter the areas. That would be a better option.

In response to Troy Bazooka's last comment, he asserts that the leg positions of one of the bodies changed from one screen to another. Assuming that to be true, that would suggest that the video had been edited. An edited video isn't necessarily a fabrication.

His assertion that aid workers and NGOs provided technical support to the LTTE is a new one to me. I'd be interested to know what evidence he is aware of in support of it. The articles I had seen about the Tiger submarines and aircraft had said that they were thought to be the result of LTTE members or supporters who had received technical training and the parts for the vehicles outside Sri Lanka and had smuggled them back inside the country. Furthermore, the Sri Lankan government directed NGOs to leave the war zone last September because they said they couldn't guarantee the safety of the aid agencies, not because the aid agencies were found to be providing technical support to the Tigers.

I note that my main point, that full access to the displaced civilians is needed, isn't being contested.

What about the leg positions changing from one screen to another (of a dead man ) ??? Is that authentic in your terms ???

Jim, I see that your problem is that you guys are not allowed to go to the camps.

With the past experiences the GOSL had with aid workers and NGO’s operating the areas who were the very people that gave the LTTE technical support and know how to build the air crafts and Submarines. Do you expect the government or any other living soul (or even a dead soul) to trust any organization ?????????????????????????

You guys have spoiled it for your selves. May be not you directly, but some others for you – may be you could help the government find them, win their confidence and then request to enter the areas. That would be a better option.

No one should downplay, excuse or explain away the inhuman treatment of innocent civilian in concentration camp as clearly shown by the video footage.

Firstly, I wish to emphasize that we are all first and foremost united by our common humanity, over and above such labels as “Tamil”, “Sri Lankan”, “Jewish”, or whatever. If you do not feel any sense of compassion for your fellow man then I would invite you to look within yourself and ask why.
Compassion is not to be confused with taking sides- it is the basic tenet of being human; and without it we are poorer.

Secondly, to the comments which explain away the behavior captured on the video as being a hazard of war and inevitable; or that these people deserved it for previous actions, I would wholeheartedly refute this. If that was the case then once a war had begun there would be license to treat members of the opposing side however one would like.

The Geneva Convention is a universally agreed set of rules set up in response to some of the atrocities committed during the Second World War (I’m sure we all know how the Nazis treated “detainees ”), in the hope that they would never be repeated and that a basic level of humanity could be afforded prisoners of war and civilians.

In response to Troy Bazooka’s last comment, he asserts that the leg positions of one of the bodies changed from one screen to another. Assuming that to be true, that would suggest that the video had been edited. An edited video isn’t necessarily a fabrication.

His assertion that aid workers and NGOs provided technical support to the LTTE is a new one to me. I’d be interested to know what evidence he is aware of in support of it. The articles I had seen about the Tiger submarines and aircraft had said that they were thought to be the result of LTTE members or supporters who had received technical training and the parts for the vehicles outside Sri Lanka and had smuggled them back inside the country. Furthermore, the Sri Lankan government directed NGOs to leave the war zone last September because they said they couldn’t guarantee the safety of the aid agencies, not because the aid agencies were found to be providing technical support to the Tigers.

I note that my main point, that full access to the displaced civilians is needed, isn’t being contested.

No one should downplay, excuse or explain away the inhuman treatment of innocent civilian in concentration camp as clearly shown by the video footage.

Firstly, I wish to emphasize that we are all first and foremost united by our common humanity, over and above such labels as “Tamil”, “Sri Lankan”, “Jewish”, or whatever. If you do not feel any sense of compassion for your fellow man then I would invite you to look within yourself and ask why.
Compassion is not to be confused with taking sides- it is the basic tenet of being human; and without it we are poorer.

Secondly, to the comments which explain away the behavior captured on the video as being a hazard of war and inevitable; or that these people deserved it for previous actions, I would wholeheartedly refute this. If that was the case then once a war had begun there would be license to treat members of the opposing side however one would like.

The Geneva Convention is a universally agreed set of rules set up in response to some of the atrocities committed during the Second World War (I’m sure we all know how the Nazis treated “detainees ”), in the hope that they would never be repeated and that a basic level of humanity could be afforded prisoners of war and civilians.

Really shcoking. man this gov is worse then sudan I guess. I was thinking that it was a terrorism issue all along. Now I realise…, hope our governments realise it and take quick actions against these barbaric govrnments.

Really shcoking. man this gov is worse then sudan I guess. I was thinking that it was a terrorism issue all along. Now I realise…, hope our governments realise it and take quick actions against these barbaric govrnments.

SriLankan Army Sexually Abusing Tamil Female Combatants during bloody blood bath on vanni beaches on mid may 2009. These photos have been shot by Sri Lankan Army soldiers by Mobile Cameras ( K310i , W2001 and 5300 ) and released in a local sri lankan website as part of Sri Lankan Army Victory Campaign. These collection of photographs & Videos covers different incidents and different victims. The common thread among them is the sexual violence that had been practiced as a war strategy by Sri Lankan Government. It is clear evidence that sexual violence was a tool in the genocidal war and constitutes a war crime.

SriLankan Army Sexually Abusing Tamil Female Combatants during bloody blood bath on vanni beaches on mid may 2009. These photos have been shot by Sri Lankan Army soldiers by Mobile Cameras ( K310i , W2001 and 5300 ) and released in a local sri lankan website as part of Sri Lankan Army Victory Campaign. These collection of photographs & Videos covers different incidents and different victims. The common thread among them is the sexual violence that had been practiced as a war strategy by Sri Lankan Government. It is clear evidence that sexual violence was a tool in the genocidal war and constitutes a war crime.

SriLankan Army Sexually Abusing Tamil Female Combatants during bloody blood bath on vanni beaches on mid may 2009. These photos have been shot by Sri Lankan Army soldiers by Mobile Cameras ( K310i , W2001 and 5300 ) and released in a local sri lankan website as part of Sri Lankan Army Victory Campaign. These collection of photographs & Videos covers different incidents and different victims. The common thread among them is the sexual violence that had been practiced as a war strategy by Sri Lankan Government. It is clear evidence that sexual violence was a tool in the genocidal war and constitutes a war crime.

SriLankan Army Sexually Abusing Tamil Female Combatants during bloody blood bath on vanni beaches on mid may 2009. These photos have been shot by Sri Lankan Army soldiers by Mobile Cameras ( K310i , W2001 and 5300 ) and released in a local sri lankan website as part of Sri Lankan Army Victory Campaign. These collection of photographs & Videos covers different incidents and different victims. The common thread among them is the sexual violence that had been practiced as a war strategy by Sri Lankan Government. It is clear evidence that sexual violence was a tool in the genocidal war and constitutes a war crime.